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Topic: Interview with Eric Bautheac (Read 560 times)

Set aside by Marcelo Bielsa last summer, making him a member of the famous Lille loft, ?ric Bauth?ac exiled to Australia in October. In Brisbane, the midfielder of thirty years lives his new adventure as a successful man.

Interviewed by Cl?ment Brossard - Tuesday, January 30

Eric, why did you decide to join Australia after this bad end of adventure in Lille?

I wanted to leave France. I had proposals to stay in the country, but I put them aside - without closing the door - because I wanted to go abroad. I had a good salary in Lille, some clubs could offer me the same. A lot more in Turkey, Russia or China, but these countries scared me a little. Turkey did not pamper me. In Russia, the cold and the language barrier disturbed me. I have a wife and two children, I also had to think about them and find a compromise. The MLS attracted me, I wanted to discover the United States. The problem is that when it's summer mercato at home, it's winter at home. It would have been necessary that I wait four more months in Lille, I did not want it. And then came an offer from Australia. I did not accept it right away. After a first call, I said that I would first inquire. I have many friends who had been there before and did not want to come back.

Is the former Ligue 1 player from Brisbane Roars midfielder, Fahid Ben Khalfallah, who played the advisers?

Fahid knew Australia for playing three years in Melbourne. He told me nothing but good. When he arrived in Brisbane, he contacted me at the request of the club and offered to come without really thinking that I would accept. It was still necessary that I meet with my family before making a decision, because it was a radical change of life. Maybe alone, I would have made another choice, but for family life, it was better. My children will be bilingual, everything is done for them here: there are parks every 500 meters, it is always beautiful, the sea is next and the schools are tops. And then we feel safe. I stayed a month alone before my wife and children joined me a few weeks ago, they do not want to leave anymore. I really do not regret my choice.

Sydney, Melbourne, it speaks a little to the French, but Brisbane ...

It is the third largest city in Australia, located to the east of the country. Here, people say that it is a small city whereas there are two and a half million inhabitants! I already found that Nice was a big city, so there! Brisbane is a bit of the climate of the C?te d'Azur, better. In winter it is around twenty degrees. We have the most beautiful beaches in the world, people are cool and relaxed, far from criticism and jealousy.

This mentality surprised you?

Honestly Yes. Yesterday, we played a match and the number flocked on my jersey took off. A hundred supporters sent me messages after the meeting apologizing for this incident. They are too nice, I had never seen that.

Did you quickly adapt to your new club?

Fortunately, Fahid was there at first, he facilitated my integration. I did not speak any language at all, so I took classes. From now on, I understand better and I arrive a little to make myself understood. The guys are nice and not individualistic. They only want one thing, the team wins. Competition is much healthier than in France. When I was injured, the guys who were playing at my position wanted me to come back as soon as possible because the team was in trouble.

What does your typical day look like?

We train every day, around 7am. At 11am, your workday is over. After training, we sometimes meet with the team in a caf?. They are crazy about coffee here, they could drink 150 a day! (Laughs.) In France, it was always more difficult to do things off football with the team. In Brisbane, we see each other more often. I then enjoy the afternoon to be with my family. My mother arrived three weeks ago, we continue to discover the city and the country.

Have you been able to discover the passion of the Australians for the barbecue?

It happens to us from time to time with the team, yes, everyone brings his food. What's crazy is that you have barbecues every 500 meters in self-service in the parks of the city. People come, barbecue, clean and leave. They are very respectful.

By staying in the clich?s, you started surfing?

Not yet, no. But I know some players in the team do, I'll ask them to teach me!

What is the level of the A-League?

It's hard to judge. Let's say that the level of the A-League is between Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 French. Sydney is really above this year. With Melbourne, they would easily remain in Ligue 1. The Australian championship is even more physical than in France, there are many mistakes. Technically and tactically, it's not so good, but there are more spaces. Every game is open, no team is just defending and everyone wants to score, even the last against the first. And then the lawns ... billiards on billiards. The stadiums are beautiful, but rarely full. At home, we play in front of 10 to 15 000 people in a stadium that can hold 52 000. When we move to Melbourne or Sydney, there are 30 000 spectators.

You have started your championship badly and appear at the bottom of the table.

With all our owners, we would not be here! There are fourteen wounded, seven of whom are incumbents. So, inevitably, it's a difficult phase where we have chained six or seven defeats in a row. There is the salary cap here, so we have 11 good players, and after that are young and less good players.

You yourself suffered an injury, a muscle tear in the thigh on December 10th.

She was predictable, this injury. I had little preparation for my arrival. In Lille, since we were separated from the professional group with those of the loft, we trained with the reserve. But at 20%, what. In October, I trained two days a week with AS Cannes. Two days later, I played in Australia, without having recovered from jet lag. It was necessary that I chained the matches because of the number of wounded and the bad beginning of the championship and, after two months, what was to happen happened. I chained a gastro short time behind and more. The Australian gastro is something! In France, you spend a little time in the bathroom and it's over. But here, you're not pretending. The pain is incredible.

You are part of the most famous clubs of the championship, the supporters do not put you too much pressure because of the lack of results?

It is true that with Sydney and Melbourne, we have won three championships each since the creation of the new format in 2005. Despite the bad pass we go through, the fans are constantly behind us. There is a real respect for top athletes here. Fans do not hiss us, do not criticize us.

Arriving in Australia, you met some compatriots through social networks.

Indeed, when I signed here, I received messages from French living in Brisbane, so I asked them to help me discover the city. I met them on my first day, and since then, we see each other often. Among them, there is a guy who came to see his sister on vacation four years ago, he never returned to France. I also found a friend with whom I played at AS Cannes, I did not know he was here, it's crazy! He is now playing in two or three divisions, that's CFA according to what he says to me.

It's important for you to share your new life on social networks?

In France, I was not on Instagram and little on Twitter. And then when I arrived in Australia, fans asked me to share my experience with them, so I decided to do it. People are asking, if it can make them dream a little at a distance ...

interviews like this and tom meets zizu would be the first thing i would be showing players from OS when approaching them (particularly from some of the more hostile clubs/leagues). there is no doubt that the quality of life here is fantastic and it is great to see that the "family" culture within the playing squad is still a big thing.

it is also why i dont support the idea of fan walk outs or boycotts (unless it is made clear to the players the intention of it). the players do really thrive off the back of support from fans. i hear that there is probably going to be a walk out this weekend in the den. If it happens i hope it just a short one, cheer loudly for 22 mins, walk out for 22 mins, come back and go nuts for the rest of the game.

interviews like this and tom meets zizu would be the first thing i would be showing players from OS when approaching them (particularly from some of the more hostile clubs/leagues). there is no doubt that the quality of life here is fantastic and it is great to see that the "family" culture within the playing squad is still a big thing.

it is also why i dont support the idea of fan walk outs or boycotts (unless it is made clear to the players the intention of it). the players do really thrive off the back of support from fans. i hear that there is probably going to be a walk out this weekend in the den. If it happens i hope it just a short one, cheer loudly for 22 mins, walk out for 22 mins, come back and go nuts for the rest of the game.

Don't even have to actually leave ...just go to the bar for 22 mins and come back ...point made !

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Your life is an occasion...rise to it.

Interviewer "if you weren't a footballer what would you be ? "Peter Crouch " hmmmm ??............a virgin ? "

"the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist"....The Usual Suspects... 1995